What's Next with Aki Anastasiou

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Amazon Web Services (AWS) Country General Manager for South Africa, Chris Erasmus, discusses the importance of AI technology. Erasmus is responsible for setting AWS’s local strategy and guiding its local growth. He is well-qualified for this job, as he boasts over 15 years of strategic, commercial, and operational experience. Erasmus begins the in...

In this What’s Next in Finance with Aki Anastasiou interview, Fedgroup’s Michael Field unpacks the biggest challenges facing local investors. Field is the General Manager for Investments at Fedgroup and has worked for the company since 2011. Before working at Fedgroup, he gained experience working for Murray and Roberts, and MegChem Engineering and Drafting Services. Field begins the interview by...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, MediaTek’s Director of Business Development for the MEA region, Rami Osman, unpacks the key features of the Dimensity 9300 chip. In 2006, he joined Microsoft as a Corporate Account Manager, before joining Qualcomm as the Country Manager for Business Development in GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) and Levant countries. Osman then took on his current...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, HONOR South Africa General Manager Fred Zhou explains what makes the new HONOR Magic Series smartphones disruptive in South Africa. HONOR is a leading global provider of smart devices and was founded in 2013. Headquartered in Shenzhen, China, HONOR has grown to become the biggest smartphone brand in the Chinese market and has quickly expanded this...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, PEP Chief Executive Michael Silke discusses PAXI – PEP’s counter-to-counter parcel delivery service. Silke has over 21 years of experience in the retail sector – much of which has been with PEP. In his current role, Silke oversees all PEP’s departments – including Cellular, Financial Services, FMCG, and PAXI. In this interview, Silke begins by exp...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Microsoft experts John Press and Michelle Olivier explain how AI tools take Windows 11 to the next level. John Press is a sales and marketing executive at Microsoft Device and Partner Solution Business in South Africa. He has been with Microsoft for over 16 years and has gained experience across many of its departments, including Product Managemen...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Comsol founder and CEO Iain Stevenson unveils Comsol’s new business-focused 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) product. Stevenson boasts 27 years of experience in the telecommunications industry, having founded Comsol in 1997. As CEO, Stevenson continues to guide the business's overall direction to ensure its continued success and growth. Stevenson be...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, MasterStart Chief Learning Officer Dr Alexia Cox discusses why it is important for South African companies to embrace innovative learning solutions. Dr Cox holds a PhD in Human Resource Management and Literature from the University of Stellenbosch, as well as a Masters in Art, English Language, and Culture and a Bachelors in Management Science fro...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, ESET Southern Africa Group CTO Adrian Stanford unpacks how AI is transforming the cybersecurity industry. Stanford is an experienced cybersecurity professional who bridges the gap between business and technical teams to deliver excellent outcomes. This is thanks to his strong ethos of curiosity and his passion for understanding how things work - b...

On this episode of What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou, Telkom Group CEO Serame Taukobong discusses the company’s evolution into an Infraco. Taukobong studied at the University of Cape Town, where he completed a BSc degree in chemistry, and went on to study executive management courses at IMD in Switzerland, GIBS, INSEAD in Singapore, and the Wharton School of Business. In 2018, he was appointed Chief...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, CipherWave CEO Shamith Maharaj discusses CipherWave’s expansion plans for Africa. Maharaj has extensive knowledge in project management, network design, network activations, network operations, network management, IT management, and service assurance. Maharaj joined BCX in 2019 as the Executive for Data Networks before moving to CipherWave in 2023...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Hein Engelbrecht — the Group Chief Executive Officer at Mustek Limited — discusses the role of education and training services in ending South Africa’s technology skills shortage. Engelbrecht joined Mustek in 1997 as Group Financial Manager and was promoted to Group Financial Director in 2001. He was then promoted to Group Managing Director, and s...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub discusses Vodacom’s huge success – both in South Africa and across the continent. In 2011, Joosub was appointed CEO of Vodafone Spain, before returning to South Africa to take the reins as Group CEO of Vodacom in 2012. He has held this position since and has led Vodacom from strength to strength, contributing to hi...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Supersonic Managing Director Carolyn Holgate unveils her customer-centric vision for the ISP in 2024 and beyond. Holgate unpacks her vision for Supersonic and explains how the company will navigate the changing broadband landscape in South Africa. She emphasizes that because Supersonic is not a tier 1 ISP, the company can be more agile and deliver...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Dimension Data CEO Alan Turnley-Jones discusses why the company is rebranding to NTT Data. Turnley-Jones held multiple managerial roles at BCX in the 1990s before joining Dimension Data in 1999. Turnley-Jones also held other roles at Dimension Data, such as Services Executive and Managed Cloud and Infrastructure Services Executive, before taking o...

In this episode of What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou, Justin Hume – the Vice President of Mobile at Samsung South Africa – unpacks the newly launched Samsung Galaxy S24 flagship smartphone lineup. Hume has worked in the cellular industry since 1997. He first served as the Marketing Manager for Mobile Phones at Samsung Electronics for 11 years before joining Altech Autopage Cellular as its Marketing...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Thato Matsio – The Impact Catalyst Head of Department: ICT and Education – discusses the Northern Cape School Connectivity project. Matsio has helped customers and organisations deliver ICT projects and programmes for the past 14 years while serving in a variety of important roles, including: • Acting Manager of ICT Operations and Project Manageme...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Datacentrix Sales Leader for Digital Business Solutions, Phil Anderson, discusses the importance of embracing AI in business. Anderson is an experienced technology delivery and sales leader who is fulfilled by helping clients create more profitable, sustainable businesses through technology adoption. In this interview, Anderson outlines how new in...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Andrew Allison – CCO of Red & Yellow Creative School of Business – explains how educators can keep up with the latest trends. Allison is a Chartered Management Accountant with a keen interest in the intersection of technology and marketing with education, transformation, and diversity. Allison begins the interview by explaining what it means for e...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Botha van der Vyver — Founder and CEO of JustSolve — discusses how AI and low-code solutions accelerate digital transformation. Van der Vyver is a software developer with over two decades of industry experience. In this interview, Van der Vyver explains what low-code is and highlights the emerging trends and market disruptions produced by low-code...

In this episode of What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou, Vishal Maharaj – Beyond Banking Divisional Executive at Nedbank – discusses the Nedbank Avo SuperShop app. Maharaj is a founding member of Nedbank Avo SuperShop and recognises the importance of delivering extraordinary, data-driven customer experience. Maharaj begins the interview by highlighting the success of Nedbank Avo SuperShop app since its...

In this episode of What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou, David McDonald — co-founder and CEO of SolarAfrica — discusses electricity wheeling and the positive impact it can have on the South African energy landscape. McDonald boasts over 17 years of experience in the power industry, and his technical expertise and hands-on approach have been instrumental to SolarAfrica’s success. In this interview, McDo...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Dr Ayotunde Coker — CEO of Open Access Data Centres (OADC) — discusses how better data centres can drive digital transformation in South Africa. Coker is one of the leading figures in the African data centre industry and is the chairperson of the influential Africa Data Centres Association industry group. In this interview, Coker unpacks what make...

In this What’s Next in Motoring interview, Alex Taplin — TiAuto Investments Group CEO — talks to Aki Anastasiou about Tiger Wheel & Tyre and its successful business model. Taplin has been with TiAuto Investments for over 25 years, during which time the group has expanded its operations across South Africa. In this interview, Taplin talks about one of TiAuto Investments’ most popular brands, Tiger...

In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Merelda Wu – Co-Founder and CEO of Melio AI – unpacks the services her business offers and explains how South African businesses can benefit from AI and machine learning (ML). Wu is an ML evangelist who holds a Master’s in Electrical Engineering from Wits University. In this interview, Wu explains what Melio AI does and which client segments it fo...